The 03 Files
by RRP
Summary: Mulder dies. Proceed with caution. Well, not ----*zap* That'd be telling...


Disclaimer and Author's Note: I don't own them. (Ta-dah!) 

Notes: This is part one in the 03 Files. I will write more if I get reviews... 

Okay, I don't know where this fits in. Sosueme. I know Scully doesn't really have a house. I gave her one because it was easier and cooler than saying 'Scully's apartment'. Slight crossover with Pretender (just mention of a character and place. You don't need to know the show to read this. Just know that the Centre and Mr. Lyle are bad. Very bad) 

There might be a little more in the future, but not enough to keep someone who's never even heard of the Pretender from reading it. 

03? Inspiration? Explanation? Of course! Everything in here has explanation! Well, not really, but hey...It's an X-Files fic, people! For those of you who don't remember, 9:03pm was the time Mulder's watch was at when he first looked at it in the Pilot. It was also the time the dead girl's watch stopped at in the same episode. 

Mulder is afraid of fire, for those of you who haven't seen that one episode. (Sosueme again. Don't remember what it's called.) 

Spoilers? Of course! What episodes? Have no idea...I haven't seen half of them, which is why there are probably going to be mistakes. I just read the summaries. 

Joelian? It's a name. Honest. Faye for the last name...reason for that too. Morgan Faye? Seriously...Morgan le Faye, King Arthur's fabled step-sister. (Or was it sister-in-law? I need to brush up on my english history.) 

CharterCorp is actually a made-up contraction of Chris Carter...**ChrisC****arter: Charter! **

I do have explanations for things in this fic, in the next one in the series! You have to review to get me to post! I do continue the story, and tie up as many loose-ends as possible. (Except why Skinner always seems to be in his office, no matter what the hour.) 

Email me corrections, or include them in your reviews! Things certain characters really wouldn't do, things like that. I'll try to fix them, and include the corrections in the next piece. 

Thanks! 

Missing Mulder 

By: RRP 

_the 03 files: case one_ 

_case start: missing mulder_ 

_xfiles_ 

_dana scully's house_5:03am_ 

The ringing of a nearby phone jarred Scully out of sleep, and she rolled over to pick the guilty noise-maker up. 

"Scully here." She mumbled sleepily into the phone. There was a brief pause on the other end, before the voice began. 

"Scully, this is Skinner. I hate to call you on vacation and all, but..." He paused, as if he had suddenly changed his mind about what he was going to say. "Can you come in today? Now, preferrably?" Scully was already out of bed, and searching for something to wear as he spoke. Skinner sounded dead urgent, and she wasn't planning on wasting any time. 

"Be there ASAP, Skinner." Click. She hung up, and decided that a decent shower could wait, as she pulled on a pair of pants. 

_xfiles_ 

_walter skinner's office_6:03am_ 

Scully was ushered into Skinner's office by his secratary, who wore a sympathtic gaze. She looked around expecting to see Mulder nearby, waiting to start their next case. Instead, she was greeted by the sight of a very tired looking Skinner. No one else was present, so it seemed. She sat down in one of the chairs before the desk. 

"Skinner, sir? You wanted to see me?" 

"Scully, I really don't know how to say this.." He broke off again. 

"Say what?" Scully asked, brow creasing and worry building. 

"They..they found Agent Mulder's body several miles from here, early this morning. It seems he was in a car wreck two days ago, and no one noticed the wreckage until today. I'm sorry, Scully, I really am, but I'm afraid Mulder's dead." 

Scully felt as if a two-ton weight had been thrown on her chest. She couldn't breathe. Mulder dead? It couldn't be! She stood up, as if in a daze, and turned. 

"Please, please excuse me." She whispered, fleeing the room. Skinner's calls after her were futile, and she ran for the only place she could think of- Mulder's office. She fumbled with her copy of the key for a full minute, before the lock gave way, and she was inside the room. She slammed, and locked it behind her. 

"Mulder?" She asked outloud, looking around the office. Hoping it was all some cruel joke. There was no answer. 

_xfiles_ 

_walter skinner's office_6:13am_ 

"Are you going to tell her?" The secretary asked in a low whisper. Skinner looked up, and shook his head as he sighed. 

"You know how they were. If she finds out we didn't even find a body, just a few traces of blood, she'll think he's still out there, somewhere." Skinner waved vaguely about the room, and the secretary nodded, but said nothing. 

_xfiles_ 

_the lone gunman office_7:03am_ 

As soon as Byers walked through the door of the office, he knew something was wrong. Frohike was fiddling with his thumbs, and Langly was cutting his beloved Dungeons and Dragons cards in half. 

"Langly? Frohike?" He asked quietly, not sure of what was going on. They both looked up. Langly gave a forceful snip with the scissors. 

"Mulder's dead." 

"Woah, what do you mean Mulder's dead?" Byers asked in disbelief.  
"Mulder's dead." Langly repeated flatly, as another card fell to the floor in halves. Byers sat down hard. 

"How?" 

"Car wreck." Langly answered. Frohike slammed his fist on the table in anger. 

"Two days ago, Byers! Two days ago! I knew something was wrong when he didn't call us yesterday!" 

"Are they sure he's dead?" Byers pressed, not quite ready to believe the ever-strange Mulder would go in such an ordinary fashion. 

"The car was fried to a crisp. They found traces of blood, proving that Mulder was in the car." 

"It was on fire?" Byers asked in a fearful whisper. The other two nodded. "But...but Mulder was scared to death of fire. If he was burnt alive, that means..." He broke off, unable to finish the sentence. 

"It means his last few moments were probably spent screaming for Scully." Langly finished, his tone sour and near-breaking. 

"Scully? I'd nearly forgotten! How's she holding up?" Byers face echoed the picture of perfect concern. 

"Last I heard, she'd locked herself in Mulder's office, and refuses to come out." Frohike said softly. 

Byers cursed. 

_xfiles_ 

_outside mulder's office_9:03am_ 

"Sirs! Sirs, you cannot come down here!" The guard protested, trying in vain to hold Byers, Frohike, and Langly back. 

"Watch us." Byers shot in return, pushing the guard aside, and knocking on the door. 

"Scully? Scully?" Frohike asked worriedly. 

"Go away." Scully's voice was muffled through the metal door. Byers nodded to Langly, and Langly bent down to pick the lock, amidst the guard's protests. The lock clicked, and he pushed the door open. The guard fell silent, as the four stared into the room. 

Scully sat at Mulder's desk, and the room was in utter chaos, the posters and signs had been ripped off the walls, and contents of the desk had been dumped out on the floor. The only thing that remained in place was the desk itself. 

"Scully?" Byers stepped foreward, looking around the room in disbelief. "Why don't you go home? We'll give you a ride." Scully glared at him for a moment, before lowering her head and nodding. 

"Fine. I'll come." 

They left the guard, standing in the hall, wide-eyed and lack-jawed. 

_xfiles_ 

_eden mall; edenspring, maine_9:03am_four months later_ 

"Come on, Will. Help me with Joel." A young woman handed the brown-haired man a small boy, and he accepted the boy easily. "Jackie, put that Gameboy down right now. We've got shopping to do." She commanded a boy in the back seat. He grumbled as he turned the game off, and climbed out of the car to stand next to the man named Will. "Will, get Joel's stroller out." The lady continued to order Will around. Will silently obeyed, and within a minute was putting the smallest boy in the stroller. "Will, we're going to go to the Gap first. You help Jackie carry the clothes he picks out, and I'll help Joel." The woman rambled on, as they walked towards the huge white brick building. Will nodded, once again chosing to remain silent. "I don't hear you." The woman intoned like a impatient child. 

"Yes, Miss Morgan." Will replied quietly. 

"That's better." Morgan accepted haughtily, raising her head. 

"Samantha!" Someone called out from the other side of the parking lot. Will's head snapped around in surprise, not sure why the name seemed so familiar. A little girl was running to her mother, and Morgan glared at Will, as he realized he had stopped pushing the stroller. 

"Will, something wrong?" She asked, daring him to say something 'out of line'. 

"No, Miss Morgan." Will shook his head, and followed her into the building. 

_xfiles_ 

_kids gap; eden mall; edenspring, maine_10:03am_ 

Byers froze as he heard a faintly familar laugh coming from a nearby store, one he hadn't heard for months, and never expected to hear again. He ducked into the store- a children's Gap- and gasped in surprise. 

The man he had once known as Agent Fox W. Mulder, thought to be dead, was standing there laughing with a boy of about six, as the boy held up mismatched outfits with clashing colors. Byers strode over to the pair, and tapped the man on the shoulder. 

"Mulder?" He asked in disbelief. The man spun around, his eyes flecked with confusion. 

"Excuse me?" 

"Mulder? Agent Fox Mulder?" Byers repeated, almost not believing his eyes. Either this was a clone (which was very likely, he imagined) or Mulder had hit his head a little too hard. 

"I'm afraid you've got the wrong person." 'Mulder' said with a half-cocked smile, as he tilted his head. 

"Will, who is that?" A strange lady stalked over to 'Mulder' and raised her nose disdainfully at Byers. 

"I don't know." Will admitted, eyeing Byers. 

"Mulder? What is going on?" Byers demanded, looking at the small group. 

"Who is Mulder?" The little boy asked, tugging on Will's leg. 

"I don't know, Jackie." Will answered, eyes still locked on Byers. Byers couldn't keep down the wave of anger. 

"Fox William Mulder! Snap out of it! Scully's been tearing herself up, and the X-Files have shut down because of you!" Byers nearly regretted the harshness of the words, because he instantly saw that Will/Mulder had no idea what he was talking about, although he could have sworn he saw another flicker of confusion when he said Scully. 

"Samantha!" Byers heard the yell behind him, and turned to see a little girl, running to her mother. Will sat down hard on a nearby bench, and held his head. 

"Will? What's wrong now?" The woman asked, more scorn than concern in her tone. Byers turned back around, to see Will clutching his head. 

"I'm, I'm fine. Just a headache, Miss Morgan." Will assured her, looking up and forcing a grin. 

"Well, then. Come on. We still have one more place to stop." Byers sighed, as Morgan made it clear that she was going to ignore him. He would just have to take the harder route. 

"Those are lovely children." He commented aloud. She turned cold, steel eyes on him. He smiled, and continued nevertheless. "Ever think about putting them in modeling?" At that, Morgan piped up. 

"Well, actually, yes...but.." 

"I know several agencies, as well as companies, that have been looking for children." Byers shrugged. It wasn't true, but with Langly and Frohike on the job, by the end of the day he'd know more and have more access than anyone else on the market. 

"Really? What kind of companies?" 

"Clothing companies." He automatically replied, mentally slapping himself only seconds later. _Well, duh, Byers!. He talked she silently handed Will the credit card, and motioned to the pile of clothing. He stood up and went to pay for them, almost reluctantly, Byers noticed. _

They continued talking, Byers making things up as he went, and Morgan believing him without question. Byers was uneasy with the fact that Morgan devoted all of her attention to him, and 'Will' took care of the kids, and kept them quiet, as he trailed behind. They finally arrived at a gourmet food shop, and Morgan stopped the conversation to order something. 

"Will, do you want anything? Jackson told me to let you pick whatever you wanted or needed up." 

'_Creep' Byers thought. '__Don't tell him until you're getting ready to leave.' _

"Sunflower seeds. Just some sunflower seeds." 

'_Okay. It's official. He's Mulder.' _

"Whatever." Morgan tossed off nonchantlantly, as she tossed a one-pound bag of sunflower seeds onto the counter with several other items. She pointed to the cash register, and Will stepped up to pay for them. 

"So," Byers began, as soon as they were back outside the store. "What exactly does Will do for you?" 

"He's a nanny." Morgan answered boredly. Byers choked on air. 

"He's...he's..." He straightened, and got his breath back. "I'm sorry, he just doesn't strike me as the type of man to...to..." He couldn't force himself to finish the sentence. It was just too awful. He had nothing against nanny's, but, weren't they supposed to be women? And Mulder...a nanny? 

"I didn't think so either. But my husband hired him." 

The walked outside into the sun of the mid-morning, and Byers handed Morgan a crisp business card. 

"Nevermind the name. Call me about the modeling." He said, before walking away. 

"Will, did you know him?" Morgan asked, after studying the card for a moment. 

"No, Miss Morgan. I've never seen him before in my life." 

_xfiles_ 

_office of the lone gunman_6:03pm_ 

"He's alive." Byers announced, walking into the room. 

"Who? What?" Langly looked up, and Frohike mumbled something from his computer console. 

"Mulder is alive." Byers said, as if he was announcing the weather. It was clear though, that he was barely containing his excitement. Frohike's chair toppled over, and Langly's Dungeons and Dragons game flew off the table. 

"How?" Frohike demanded. 

"Well, I'll admit I wasn't absolutely sure until he bought the sunflower seeds." Byers said vaguely. 

"Hundreds of people buy sunflower seeds everyday." Langly pointed out. 

"Yes, but how many of them go by the name Will, look exactly like Mulder, and have severe reactions to the name Samantha?" 

"Roughly twenty-seven, out of the billions in the world. It's a rather small figure." Frohike replied. 

"But, something was wrong with him. He doesn't remember anything, and he denies knowing me at all." Byers continued, his tone sliding into a depressed-sounding state. 

"Even if you're right, we can't tell Scully until we're sure." Langly said wisely. 

"True." Frohike nodded. 

"We need to get inside, follow him for a while." Langly straightened his glasses as he spoke. 

"Already done. I just need information on children's modeling." Byers said, sitting down. "The lady he's working for thinks I'm some type of modeling agent.  
"I'm on it." Frohike picked up his chair and sat in front of the computer once again. 

"Now, where does he live?" Langly asked, picking up his board. Byers froze. 

"I don't know. I just gave the lady my card." 

"Do you know her name?" 

"Just Morgan. That's all I know." 

"No last name?" 

"No." 

"Great Byers, just great." 

"Nark." 

_xfiles_ 

_jackson and morgan faye residence_7:03am_ 

"So, who was he?" Jackson Faye asked, taking a sip of his coffee. Laughing was heard in the background, coming from Joel and Jackie's play room. 

"I don't know. He thought he knew Will, but Will swore he had never seen him before." Morgan replied, setting the card Byers had given her down on the table. Jackson picked it up, and looked it over. 

"The Lone Gunman? Byers, Langly, and Frohike?" Jackson read aloud, his face twisting into a frown. 

"I think he was trying to get infomation about the children." Morgan said, sniffling, although it was obvious her concern was feigned. Jackson's face suddenly lit up. 

"Oh! Frohike! I used to know him! He was in the cable business, back when CharterCorp was still making and dealing merges and trades with the smaller companies. Last I heard he was in some type of government group. I guess this is it." 

"What did he look like?" Morgan asked cautiously. 

"Short, balding. Not much to look at." Jackson replied, taking another sip of the hot coffee. 

"Then it wasn't him. The man I talked to was medium height, brown hair and beard." Morgan's mouth twisted into a pout, and she sat on Jackson's lap. "How do we know he's safe?" 

"I don't think we can know, unless we talk to him again." Jackson answered bluntly, squeezing a part of her lower anatomy. Morgan giggled, and twirled a curly strand of his hair with her pinky. Jackson murmured distractedly. "Government...government..." He sat up fast, and Morgan fell off his lap with a yelp. "You said he talked to Will?" 

"Uh-huh." 

"I've got to talk to Mr. Lyle." Jackson said suddenly, dashing for the phone. Morgan picked herself up, and sat in the previously occupied seat. 

"Not fair." 

_xfiles_ 

_jackson and morgan faye residence_8:03pm_ 

"Time for bed." Will announced, standing up. Jackie tugged on his leg, and frowned. 

"Can't we finish our game?" Will looked down at the near-finished board game, and shook his head. 

"We've already played three minutes over your bedtime." Will answered, helping Jackie to his feet. "I'll clean it up, after I bring Joel to bed." Jackie looked over at his smaller brother, who had fallen asleep in his playpen. 

"Okay." 

"Jackie! Why aren't you in bed?" Morgan stood in the doorway, hands on her hips. 

"Will was just taking me to bed, Morgan." Jackie answered. Morgan stormed over to him. 

"First of all, I told you to call me Mommy." Morgan snapped, as Will watched helplessly. 

"You're not my Mommy!" Jackie shouted, stamping his foot. 

"I am too." Morgan growled back. 

"No! You're not!" Jackie screamed, running out of the room. Morgan straightened, and glared at Will. He shrugged. 

"I'm sorry, Miss Morgan. I just lost track of time. We really were just going up. It won't happen ag-" Will was cut off by the sharp sting of Morgan's hand against his cheek. 

"You've been filling his head with nonsense. It's all your fault he won't call me Mommy." 

"But, I-" Will once again felt her hand against his face. His eyes snapped shut, as he feared another blow. The fact that her accusations were false were almost as painful as the slaps. When he opened his eyes again, Morgan had left the room. He checked the edges of his mouth for blood, and when he found none, he wearily shuffled over to the playpen to pick up Joel. 

As he carried the small boy up the huge staircase, he realized how much he hated the family he worked for. 

Jackson Faye never took time to visit his two small boys, and had been married four times, so Will had been told. His first wife gave him a child, and he soon divorced her, winning custody of the child- Jackson Justice Faye the Third, or Jackie. Two other marriages flew by, nanny's flying in and out to take care of the small boy Jackson never had time for. His fourth wife, the youngest so far, was no more than a spoiled child herself. She gave him another boy, Joelian Morgan Faye, or Joel. 

Not once could Will ever remember seeing Jackson visit his children, and Morgan only spent time with them because of her need for power. It didn't take long to realize that Jackie would listen to anyone under his father's roof, and Joel was too young to argue. Will listened under threat of further punishment. He wasn't a nanny, he ruefully realized, he was a slave. 

'_Why not just leave? Where would I go? There's no where to go. For now, anyway.' _

With that decided, Will set Joel down in the crib, and trudged over to Jackie's bed, which was occupied by a small shaking form. 

"Jack, little man?" Will asked softly, using the fond nickname. Jackie sniffled, and sat up. 

"I hate her." He whispered harshly, rubbing his eyes and sniffling. "She's not my Mom." 

"I know, Jack. I know." Will rubbed his charge's back, and sighed. 

"I don't have any family. Mommy left, and Daddy never comes to see me. Do you have family, Will?" 

"I...I don't know, Jack. I don't think so." Will cocked his head. 

'_Scull-' The flash, the briefest flash of someone ran through his head. He didn't even get a full name or image, just a flash. _

'_Mul-' There! There it was again! _

"Will, are you okay? You're holding your head again." Jackie asked concernedly. Will looked up at the boy, and slowly nodded. 

"I'll...I'll be fine, Jackie. Goodnight." 

"G'night, Will." Jackie mumbled, laying down. Will left the room, and started down the stairs. 

"Will! Have you taken your medicine?" Will's head snapped up, and he saw Jackson, waiting at the bottom of the stairs. 

"No, sir." 

"Well, man. Don't forget." Jackson snapped, before striding off down another hall. 

"Yes, sir." Will mumbled after him. 

_xfiles_ 

_walter skinner's office_9:03am_one week later_ 

"Mr. Skinner?" Byers stepped into the office, and sat down. "I know we haven't talked often, but there is something rather important I know, concerning two of your agents." Skinner raised his eyebrows in interest. 

"Proceed." 

"Approximately four months ago, one of your agents, who was also a friend of mine, Special Agent Fox William Mulder, was reported dead on site of a car accident. Mr. Skinner, I've come to tell you that, defying natural law, as he's done so many times before (I swear, that man is frustrating) Agent Mulder is alive, though not completely well, in Edenspring, Maine." Byers leaned back in his chair, satisified with his report, and Skinner's mouth, which was moving up and down in slow motion, as if he wished to speak, but couldn't. Finally, 

"Do you have proof?" Byers pulled out a manila envelope, and extracted several eight by ten photos. He slapped them down on the desk triumphantly, and Skinner picked them up. 

"Mr. Byers, I believe you're correct. If neither of us is mistaken, that is my dead agent." 

"But not so dead, as those pictures were taken only yesterday." Byers pointed out with a smirk. 

"Who are the kids? Certainly not his?" 

"Oh, no." Byers shifted uncomfortably in his seat, now aware that he would have to answer the question he hadn't wanted to answer. "Those are the children he's in charge of. He's...a nanny, sir." 

"Nanny? Mulder?" Skinner laughed. "Impossible. Really, what's he doing?" 

"I'm serious, Mr. Skinner. He doesn't seem to remember anything about me, or the F.B.I. for that matter." 

"That's bad." Skinner commented distractedly, while looking at the pictures. "You haven't told Agent Scully, have you?" 

"No, sir. I didn't want to...get her hopes up, so to speak. If this memory loss is irreversible, then maybe it's best she didn't know he was still alive." Byers said, looking down at the floor. 

"Good. I'm glad to hear that you have the best interests of both my agents in mind, Mr. Byers. I will be sure to look into this, of course. Edenspring, Maine, you said?" 

"Yes, sir." 

"I'll send someone right away." 

"Sir, I know this would be unorthadox, but, could I go in place of an agent? I've known Agent Mulder for quite some time, and-" 

"Say no more, I see your point. As far as the F.B.I. is concerned, the man is dead. It would be purely personal business to investigate the matter further." 

"Yes, sir. Thank you, Mr. Skinner." Byers stood, and shook Skinner's hand, before leaving the room. 

"For both their sakes, Mr. Byers, I hope you're right." 

_xfiles_ 

_jackson and morgan faye residence_7:03pm_ 

"Will? Why are there men with guns outside?" Jackie peered out the window, and Will strode over to join him. 

"I don't know. Stay here, and watch Joel. I'll go find out." Will left the room, and started downstairs, when he heard voices. 

"Yes, Mr. Lyle said to kill him." Jackson was saying to another man. 

"Are you sure?" 

"I know my orders, Max. Just follow yours." 

"But sir-" 

"Max, do it, or I'll find someone else to take your job. I've got guards all around the house, he can't get away. He's probably in the nursery with my kid's right now, go check there. Shoot him as soon as you see him." 

"In front of your kids?" 

"Why not? Just do it, Max. Kill him." 

It didn't take a genius to deduce that they were talking about Will, though he couldn't figure out why. 

'_Say bye to Jack? Too dangerous. Run, Will, just run!' _

So, he ran. He flew out the back door, and several guards started yelling, and shooting at his heels. 

A car skidded to a U-turn in front of him, and the passenger door swung open. 

"Get in, Mulder! Get in!" The man from the mall shouted at him. 

"Will!" Jackie's scream rang from a second story window, and Will froze. He stared dumbly at the man in the car for only a few seconds, before fleeing back into the house. 

"Jackie! Jackie!" He flung open the door, to see a beefy man, who he quickly realized was Max, with Jackie and Joel. Max hesitated, then grabbed Jackie. 

"Will!" 

"Jackie-" Will took a step forward, and Max lifted lifted his gun to Jackie's forehead. The little boy's eyes were full of fear. 

"Not another step, or I swear I'll shoot him!" Max threatened, his voice shaking. 

"Will..." Jackie was pleading helplessly, babbling and occasionally whimpering Will's name. 

"Jackie, I'll handle this. Just calm down." Will heard someone speaking behind him, and his head spun to see the man from the mall. 

'_John. John Byers' There was the flash again. If the situation hadn't been so serious, Will would have sighed in frustration at himself. _

"Max, is it? I know you. We've met, on Centre business, remember? You were with Mr. Lyle." 

"Mr. Byers?" Max asked, his eyebrows raising. "Oh, yeah. I remember you." 

"Max, you don't really want to hurt a kid, do you? Just put the gun down." Max looked down at Jackie, and then at the gun. He growled, and threw the gun to the floor. 

"Fine. But I'm keeping the kid. Get out of here before they kill your friend." 

"Thanks, Max. I owe you one." Byers grabbed Will's arm, and pulled him out of the room. 

"Mulder, Will, whoever you are, what kind of stunt was that? We've got to go!" 

"Will!" Jackie was screaming again, and his eyes locked on Will's, as he struggled in Max's grasp. Will was silenced by the horror in Jackie's eyes, and allowed Byers to drag him to the car in a dazed state. 

"Sir, what are you doing?" Will heard faintly, as he watched a guard stop Byers on the steps. 

"New orders, from Mr. Faye. He doesn't want Will shot on his property. I'm taking him out in the woods." Byers shot back quickly. Will staggered on the steps, as everything started blurring. 

"Kill him fast, before he faints or something." The guard muttered. "Go ahead, sir." 

Byers didn't wait for another word, he continued pulling Will to the car by one arm. He nearly tossed him in the passenger seat, and slammed on the gas. 

"Thanks." Will mumbled. "I think." 

They rode in uncomfortable silence for over an hour, before Will looked at his watch, and gasped. 

"I don't have my medicine!" 

"What medicine?" 

"I have this medicine, for headaches and stuff. I take it three times a day." Will shrugged, and yawned. 

"Listen, Will, Mulder, whoever. Get some sleep, okay? We've got a long drive ahead of us." Byers sighed as he calculated the long road ahead of them. Will nodded, and leaned his seat back. 

_xfiles_ 

_walter skinner's office_9:03pm_ 

"Sir, someone is on the phone for you." The secratary's voice sounded over the intercom. 

"I've got it." Skinner picked up the phone, and answered. "Hello?" 

"Mr. Skinner, I seem to have found your missing agent." Byers replied, his cheery tone bordering on depression. 

"And?" 

"He's out cold. I'm driving towards D.C. as we speak." 

"Out cold? What happened?" 

"Well, in short, they were trying to kill him. He's had a rough day." A faint murmur was heard in the background, before Byers spoke again. "He's waking up. I'll call you back later." Click. 

_xfiles_ 

_dana scully's bedroom_4:03am_ 

The phone's ringing jarred Scully out of a troubled sleep, interupting the nightmare that had become so common and expected. 

"Hello?" She mumbled, still half-asleep. 

"Scully?" Skinner replied, more of a question than a greeting. 

"It's me, Skinner." Scully sighed, and looked at the clock, which was blinking at her with an early morning hour on the little screen. 

"Scully, I need you to come in. Now." Skinner's tone was bordering on happy, the happiest Scully had heard him in a while. 

"Um, okay. I'll be there as soon as I can." Scully hung up, and slid out of bed. It took only minutes to throw on some clothes, and make it to the kitchen. She pulled a soda out of the fridge, deciding not to wait for the coffee-maker to warm up and brew a pot of coffee. 

"Skinner, this better be important." Scully muttered, climbing into her car and shivering against the dark, damp morning cold. 

_xfiles_ 

_walter skinner's office_5:03am_ 

Scully pushed the door open, and gasped. There, in the flesh, stood Mulder. He looked exhausted, but a light of recognition was in his eyes. He stood there, looking at her, waiting for something to happen. Scully stood, staring back, trying to decide whether he was a vision, or really Mulder. 

"Mulder?" She whispered, almost fearfully. 

"Scully?" He replied, a hint of tired smile curling the corners of his mouth. Scully completely forgot that Skinner and Byers were present. She flew forward, and threw her arms around Mulder. 

Mulder rocked backwards on his heels with the force of Scully nearly running him over, but he regained his balance and returned the hug tightly. 

"I thought you were dead." Scully was whispering in his ear. Mulder sighed blissfully. It was all a warm, happy blur, and he didn't want it to end. 

"So did I." He replied. She pushed him away, and held him at arm's length. 

"You look horrible." 

"Thanks. Hear that, Skinner, Byers? I'm alive and horrible looking." Mulder laughed. Scully nearly melted. She had waited for what seemed forever to hear that laugh again. Mulder tottered suddenly, and she pushed him down into the chair he had been sitting in before she came in. 

"You're exhausted. I'll take you home. Come on," Scully grabbed his jacket off the chair, and took his arm with her free hand. He followed her out of the room with a grin, giving a little wave to Byers and Skinner as he was pretty much dragged out of the room. 

"So, five dollars she doesn't really take him to his house?" Skinner challenged. 

"No deal. I heard what she said." 

"Darn." 

"Actually, it's Dana." 

_xfiles_ 

_dana scully's house_6:03am_ 

"Where have you been, Mulder?" Scully asked as she led him inside. 

"I'll explain in the morning." Mulder answered sleepily. "I've got some theories." 

"Mulder, it was a simple question. Where have you been?" Scully repeated with a laugh. "No theories involved." 

"I'll explain in the morning. And isn't this your house? I thought so." Mulder looked around, and sighed. 

"First, you don't have a bed at your house. And there's no way I'm letting you out of a fifty foot range anytime soon. You sleep in my bed, I'll sleep on my couch. And, Mulder, it is morning." 

"Oh..well, when I wake up, then." Mulder replied with a yawn. He fell gratefully in the bed she had led him to. She sat on the edge of the bed, and looked down at him. 

"Scully?" 

"Mulder?" 

"I missed you. 

"I missed you, too. Go to sleep." 

"Scully?" 

"Mulder?" 

"I love you." The room was filled with silence. Finally, Scully answered, with a light kiss on Mulder's forehead. 

"And I love you, Mulder. Go to sleep." 

_xfiles_ 

_case closed_ 


End file.
